Federal report: Removing Northwest dams ​“essential” to salmon survival

HYDROPOWER: A federal report finds at least one of four hydropower dams on the Lower Snake River in Washington state must be removed to restore salmon to fishable levels. (Seattle Times)

ALSO:
• Federal officials take unprecedented conservation measures in an attempt to keep Lake Powell reservoir levels high enough for Glen Canyon Dam to continue generating hydropower. (Guardian)
• A Colorado water utility brings a 30 kW hydrokinetic power installation in a water supply channel online. (Renewable Energy World)

OIL & GAS:
• Environmental groups sue the U.S. EPA over a Colorado ozone reduction plan, saying it does not adequately limit oil and gas facility emissions. (Colorado Sun)
• California advocates say an oil-rich county’s pollution mitigation system may be underestimating the impact of emissions from oil and gas facilities. (Capital & Main)
• A tank at an oil and gas well in Wyoming catches fire, injuring one person. (Casper Star-Tribune)

UTILITIES:
• Colorado regulators approve three utilities’ clean energy plans despite environmentalists’ claims that they didn’t account for nearly 200,000 tons of coal emissions. (Colorado Sun)
• Alaska renewable energy advocates say an electricity cooperative’s plan to shut down one of two units at the state’s largest coal plant and invest in wind power will likely drive a statewide energy transition. (High Country News)

ENERGY STORAGE:
• The world’s largest battery energy storage system, in northern California, is brought back online after overheating incidents shut it down for months. (Energy Storage News)
• California’s grid operator plans to revise how it models energy storage to facilitate market participation and increase payments to storage providers. (Utility Dive)

POLITICS: White House sources say the Biden administration is opening the door to approving major fossil fuel projects — including the Willow oil drilling development in Alaska — in hopes of securing Sen. Joe Manchin’s vote for the stalled Build Back Better climate bill. (Washington Post)

COAL:
• Navajo Nation residents call on Arizona regulators to support a proposed $100 million just transition fund to help communities affected by coal mine and power plant closures. (Arizona Central)
• Two workers killed at a Colorado coal power plant in June were walking on a coal pile when the accident occurred, even though federal regulators warned against the practice in 2020. (CPR)

TRANSPORTATION:
• Colorado air quality experts say state initiatives to replace diesel buses with electric ones and provide free public transportation during high-pollution months will not significantly reduce ozone levels. (Kaiser Health News)
• California startups launch a pilot program in rural Oregon to test electric tractors and other farm equipment. (Inside Climate News)